Golden Sedge
Carex aurea
- Plant Type
- Graminoid (Deciduous)
- Landscape Layer
- Groundcover
- Sun
- ☀️ Full Sun, ⛅ Part Sun
- Moisture
- 💧 Regular, 💧💧 High, 💧💧💧 Wet
- Soil
- Loam, Sand, Silt, Organic / Peat, Calcareous
- Bloom
- May, June
- Sociability
- S2 – Small groups
Pollinator Value
- ❄️ Winter Food Source
- Carex seeds are consumed by at least 63 bird species at the genus level, including waterfowl (Mallard, Green-winged Teal, Northern Pintail), gamebirds (Ruffed Grouse, Wild Turkey, Spruce Grouse), and sparrows (American Tree Sparrow, Snow Bunting). Sora and Virginia Rail are particularly dependent, with Carex occurring in up to 52% of Sora diets. Seeds mature in summer and are shed by late summer; while USDA reports no fruit/seed persistence, sedge achenes accumulate in wetland substrates where they remain accessible to overwintering birds through shallow-water foraging.
S57 genus-level avian diet data; S11 Fruit/Seed Persistence=No
Ecology & Conservation
- Proximity Score
- 0
- Native Status
- ✅ Outaouais ✅ Ottawa ✅ QC ✅ ON
- Closest Direction
- Local
- CEC Eco-Regions
- 5 – Northern Forests, 5.2 – Mixed Wood Shield, 5.2.3 – Algonquin/Southern Laurentians
- Rarity Notes
- Globally secure (G5) and nationally secure (N5) in both Canada and the United States. Ranked S5 in Ontario and S4 in Quebec, indicating it is apparently secure but somewhat less common on the Quebec side. Not listed under SARA or COSEWIC. Sparse in the Ottawa-Hull region per Gillett & White (1978), and uncommon but locally abundant per Brunton (2005). Listed as threatened in New Hampshire and endangered in Illinois, near its southern range limit.
S22 G5/N5/S5-ON/S4-QC; S26 not SARA listed; S63 sparse in QC; S62 uncommon locally abundant; S61 threatened in NH
- Rarity Ranks
- QC S4 – Apparently Secure, ON S5 – Secure
- Migration
- Stable
- Ecological Context
- Occupies moist to wet open or lightly shaded habitats on calcareous substrates, including meadows, seepage slopes, fens, cedar swamps, and sandy shorelines. Frequently found in thin soil over limestone, roadside ditches with calcareous groundwater, and interdunal swales. In the Ottawa-Gatineau region, specimen records note habitats such as moist calcareous meadows, moist sandy fields, and open grassy roadside ditches in sand over limestone.
S6 moist open/shaded habitats, basic soils; S7 calcareous soils, fens, cedar swamps; S10 calcareous rocky/sandy habitats; S48 specimen habitats in Ottawa area
Permaculture & Companion Planting
- Roles
- Fire Retardant, Water Purifier
S73/S29/S72 Evidence: Fire Retardant: S73 [MEDIUM]: S11 Fire Tolerance = High (not definitional)] | Water Purifier: S72 Hemenway (tables: 5-3, pp. 82)]
- Notes
- Suited as a low groundcover in wet guild plantings alongside taller wetland species. Its water purification role and fire-tolerant habit make it useful for riparian buffers and rain garden edges on calcareous substrates.
S72 water purifier role; S11 Fire Tolerance=High; S10 calcareous wet habitat preference
Edibility & Foraging ℹ
Never ingest a plant unless you have 100% certainty of its identity and have consulted multiple reputable sources. The information provided in the Localeaf Plant Database is compiled from secondary sources for educational and historical purposes only.
Click here for more info →
ℹ
Never ingest a plant unless you have 100% certainty of its identity and have consulted multiple reputable sources. The information provided in the Localeaf Plant Database is compiled from secondary sources for educational and historical purposes only.
Click here for more info →✅ Edible
- Foraging Notes
- Michigan Flora notes that the golden, fleshy perigynia when ripe can be readily stripped for an unusual, if sparse, nutty nibble. This is a minor forage use rather than a culinary staple.
S7 Michigan Flora perigynia edible comment
Seed Source
- Akène
- Wild About Flowers